L'avenir de la surprise tactique à l'heure de la numérisation
Surprise is a crucial dimension of military tactics, which stems from incertitude inherent to war.
Over the last decades, the continuous progress of information technologies has promoted the idea of a “transparent battlefield”. This may lead to question the relevance of the concept of tactical surprise in the digital era. As a matter of fact, far from putting an end to surprise, technological breakthroughs offer new opportunities to create surprise as well as new risks of being surprised. In this renewed tactical context, the French Army will inaugurate in 2018 a comprehensive modernization program named Scorpion, which calls for a reshaping of the command and control structure in order to put surprise at the core of the modes of action, so as to make the most of the technological potential while staying away from overreliance.
This content is available in French: L'avenir de la surprise tactique à l'heure de la numérisation
Related centers and programs
Discover our other research centers and programs
Security Studies Center
Heir to a tradition dating back to the founding of Ifri, the Security Studies Center provides public and private decision-makers as well as the general public with the keys to understanding power relations and contemporary modes of conflict as well as those to come. Through its positioning at the juncture of politics and operations, the credibility of its civil-military team and the wide distribution of its publications in French and English, the Center for Security Studies constitutes in the French landscape of think tanks a unique center of research and influence on the national and international defense debate.
Find out more
Discover all our analyses
A Fragile Consensus? The Pressure on the Norm Against Nuclear Testing
Apart from North Korea, no state has conducted explosive nuclear tests in the 21st century, reflecting the emergence of a strong international norm against such testing.
The Franco-German Brigade and the Revival of European Defense
One thing has been clear since Donald Trump's return to the White House: the very existence of the European unification project is threatened. Unless it develops a sovereign defense policy to counter the war in Ukraine and the weakening of American security guarantees, the European Union will continue to see its internal cohesion and external attractiveness wane.
Taking the Pulse: Can Europeans Build Their Independent Extended Nuclear Deterrent?
Confronted with a U.S. disengagement and the Russian threat, Europeans are reconsidering their stance on nuclear deterrence. Given the capabilities of the French and British arsenals, can Europe develop an independent nuclear deterrent?
RAMSES 2024. A World to Be Remade
For its 42nd edition, RAMSES 2024 identifies three major challenges for 2024.